Bought my 94 crestliner about 1-1/2 ago from a dealer here in Pa. eventually got titles in the mail for boat and trailer which I locked in a safe and never looked over.This week I sell the boat to a gentlemen from MD. I gave him the titles to look at while standing in my driveway before going to do the transfers at a notary.He looked over the titles and off to the notary we go and do the transfer.The following day he calls telling me that the boat has a salvage title. Again I never looked at the title in the time I owned the boat.So I call the dealer that sold me the boat and they tell mevI need to call the PA fish and boat commission so that's what I do,I gave the lady the hull I'd number and she looks in the computer system and finds that the owner prior to me put an ins. claim in back in 2012 which was the cause of the salvage title.Looking at the boat you can tell there was never any kind of serious damage that was repaired and the fish and boat don't know what the claim was for.So 3 yrs went by and this boat was never issued a salvage title until it went into my name in 2015 and the lady at the fish and boat commission admitted they missed it.So now my question is how is this to be handled for the gentleman who boat the boat from me in MD.I just don't want to end up in a legal battle over something I knew nothing about.

_________________2015 Polar Kraft Dakota 1460 set up for electric only#45 minnkota and #44 ozark trail on the transom powered by a group 24 and 29

absolutely, find an attorney who has dealt with title disputes. most offer a free consult. there you can find out more info from him on what legal liability is yours, or the dealers. and he can draw up paperwork if needed for you to present to the dealership. either way you'll know more, and can then decide what to do. title regs differ between states and can get confusing and complicated quick.

_________________Beware of any old man in a profession where one usually dies young.

Never heard of a "Salvage title". It sounds like that title was issued due to an insurance claim (and no one knows what the claimed damage was)....It is possible that the former owner FIXED whatever was the issue.

Most boat sales are "as is and shown"...and you may have no liability at all, but you are trying to do the right thing...

If the boat appears to you, and to the buyer, to have no defects, l might ask the buyer if .....you paid a boat dealer... of his choice... to inspect the boat and report any deficiencies, .....perhaps both you and he can agree that there is nothing to worry about. That is assuming that he can then get a clean title.

Just a suggestion.

richg99

_________________"Form follows Function..." & "There is nothing new under the sun". Ecclesiastes 1:9""richg99

The dealer that sold me the boat said the same thing that they never heard of a salvage title. Yeah that is what happened the prior owner had an ins.claim but nobody can say what for and there are no signs of any repairs being made to the boat,the whole situation is odd and the fish and boat commission is of absolutely no help.

_________________2015 Polar Kraft Dakota 1460 set up for electric only#45 minnkota and #44 ozark trail on the transom powered by a group 24 and 29

Salvage titles are common here, but boats don't have titles in this state (only trailers, oddly enough). Have dealt with cars, motorcycle salvage titles though.

A salvage title can be issued if a vehicle is totalled and then repaired. Or it can be issued if the vehicle pulling it was totaled and the vehicle being pulled was insured with the pulling vehicle when it was wrecked, or if the paint was scratched at some point-which then the owner filed an insurance claim that was more than the boat was worth (totaled). Lot of reasons a salvage title can be issued, and it varies from state to state.

I see TONS of cars and trucks here with salvage titles. Most are perfectly fine and have zero problems. The bad part is, however, that sometimes the insurance company can throw a wrench into the spokes. Let's say there is an accident and you are at fault. Instead of it being a easy deal where your insurance pays for the other vehicle repairs, if the owner of the other vehicle finds out that yours has a salvage title, they can say that it was unsafe to operate, and in some lawyers' eyes, it's easier to get more money out of you. Also, the value of a vehicle with a salvage title is generally less than one with a "clear" title. Sometimes an insurance company won't even insure a salvaged or repaired vehicle. In this state, once the "red" (Salvage) title is issued, it stays with the vehicle and can't be changed back to a "blue" (non salvage or "clear") title, ever. Unless the VIN (or HIN) was changed and that is highly illegal.

I have owned a couple red titled cars and it was always a headache. From that point on I ALWAYS ask to see the title before I agree to purchase. I've even purchased an ATV once and glanced at the title..."blue" (good!). Year or so later I was trying to sell it and saw that the model was different. Looked at the VIN and seen that the VIN was different. The owner had given me the title to a different ATV. LUCKILY I knew him just well enough to ask him about it, and he paid to have everything fixed properly.

Then....there's ATV's motorcycles, trailers, boats, cars, trucks....that are for sale, and the owner can't come up with a title at all. That little piece of paper proves ownership. If they don't have it, they don't own it and if you-the buyer-purchase it without a title, you are taking on a big problem unless you know how to work the system, which is usually "bending" the law.

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